Floor covering



Patented dune :5, 1928.

warren STATES PATENT- OFFICE.

IZADOB J. NOV'AK, OF BRIDGEPOBT, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE RAYBESTOSCOMPANY, OF BRIDGE-PORT, CONNECTICUT, A

CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT.

FLOOR COVERING.

Application filed Apri1 12, 1922. Serial No. 552,021.

This invention relates to improvements in floor covering, and refersmore particularly to a floor covering built up of plies. Among theobjects of the invention are to provide a'durable floor covering of wideadaptability which will serve for similar purposes as the ordinarylinoleum is now used.

Linoleum as it is commonly made at the present time consists essentiallyof a plastic or paste comprising cork, Wood flour. clay and otherinorganic fillers with a binder of linseed oil and varnish gums, thewhole being applied to a burlap to the desired thickness, and the dryingoil allowed to set at an elevated temperature for an extended periodbefore the plastic or paste is sufficiently hard and durable to standthe wear satisfactorily. Due to the fact that the body of the base ormaterial of which the linoleum is made is of finely comminuted materialsincorporated with a paste binder, it at no time has adequate tenacity,and is well known to. be extremely fragile on handling.

= This fragility or tendency to crumble becomes more pronounced withage, due to the continual oxidation of the drying. oils. Also, theburlap upon which it is formed, rots easily under damp conditionsleaving the plasticunsuppo-rted and apt to crumble. A flooncovering ofthis type is not suited for universal use and particularly under severeconditions of wear and dampness.

Fig. l is a fragmentary perspective view of the material showing theplies combined with the adhesive material. Fig. 2 is a fragmentaryperspective view of the material showing the plies combined by feltingthe separate stocks together.

The floor covering which is the subject of this invention, has asuperior wearing surface to the linoleum and floor coverings nowcommonly used in that it has higher resistance to abrasion due to thehigher hinder proportion, and likewise its waterproof ualities arecorrespondingly better. The oor covering as formed, consists of twolies. Below the tough wearing surface is a base substance of a differentcharacter for the purpose of obtaining limpness, so that the flooringshall lie fiat without curling. This base material is especially adaptedto this feature, combining also low.

compressibility, high waterproof qualities desired color to harmonizewith the surface ply, or, its color may be identical to that of thesurface layer.

as desired, are combined in. any relative thickness'that may be desired,according to the wear to which they are subject and the life required.Thus in making a. sheet .125 inch in thickness, the surface coat may beThese two layers or plies .010 inches in thickness to .030 inches asdesired. The thickness of the surface coat is the important factor indeciding the life of the material. The following is'a representagivefurnish intended for the surfacing p llO parts chrome leather shavings,

40 parts cotton or jute, 125 parts wood flour or cork, 50 arts coloringpigments,

500 parts dry varnish-'1 part part copal,

200 parts clay,

50 parts sodium silicate,

parts alum.

The method of preparing these constituents for the surface ply is to mixthem thoroughly in a beater or Hollander to form a non-adhesive emulsionin a water vehicle,

the varnish. bitumen or waxy binder being incorporated with the fibreand the adhesive particles being surrounded by non-adhesive films of thewater and the Y emulsifying agent. The stock or furnish is then passedover a paper machine in a similar manner to a common aper stock. Asmaller amount of fibre 1s used in connection with the stock in orderto-carry the filler materials and emulsion during the paper makin%operation.

ubsequentis dried, and

to its being sheeted, the stock upon the application of heat andpressure the binder material coalesccs and serves asa bond incorporatingthe fibre and filler materials into a tough flooring material.

After drying and calendering so as to flux and coalesce the varnish orbinder substances throu bout the material, it is allowed to age or aboutone week at a temperature of 150 F., so as to thoroughly dry the binder.It will be noted that the proan I linseed oil,

portion of binder to fillers is greater than usual to the common typesof llnoleum or paint surface.

A typical furnish of the base material may consist of the followin 30parts chrome leather 3 avings,

70 parts cotton or ute,

125 parts Wood flour or cork,

parts coloring pigments,

500 parts wax tallings,

250 parts clay, I

50 parts sodium silicate,

80 parts alum.

This base material is emulsified in a water vehicle in a similar mannerto that explained above. and is sheeted in a paper making operation aspreviously described.

In the production of the base material It is unnecessary to put itthrough the aging stage, as the drying and calendering operation willadequately flux and coalesce the binder substance and dry itsufficiently for immediate use.

It is understood that although typical furnishes for the surface andbase layers have been recited, that variations both in the amounts andin the character of the materials may be used without departing from thesubject matter of the invention. The binder substances may be varied inthat wax tailings, varnish and innumerable other colorable bitumens,resins or gum substances may be used as a binder for either the base orsurfacing layers.

Further, the invention is not restricted to any one kind of fibre orhinder substance, as many combinations have been found during theexperimental work that are adaptable to the purpose and included in thisinvention.

The two plies may be united in any de sired manner, either by theordinary method of coveringthe base material with cementitioussubstances such as paste, asphalt or adhesive waterproof substances,subjecting I the layers to a calendering operation.

Another manner of combining the layers is to change the film or stockformed on the cylinder mould of a wet machine from one variety toanother. thus imposing the surface layer directly upon the base materialduring the formation upon the machine.

The forming of the material in this manner partially incorporatesthesurface la er with the base material, and a substantially inseparablebond units them into what amounts to a unit or single layer of material.

In incorporating the emulsified binder substance with the furnish orstock to be sheeted, it is desirable firstto form the emulsion bythoroughly mixing and dispersing the adhesive binder in a water vehicleby using the clay as an emulsifying agent. \Vhen the binder, Which asexplained, may consist of any colorable bitumen, rosin, gum, waxtailingsor similar substance, has been agitated and mixed with clay and water insufiicient proportion to produce a non-adhesive emulsion of the bindersubstance. the

mixture is combined with the fibrous and filler constituents andthoroughly incorporated therein. The addition of sodium silicate andalum serve to cause the emulsified binder substance to gather about andcling more tenaciously to the fibrous stock, and after being sheeted andcoalesced by heat and pressure, the binder will be found to be morethoroughly incorporated in the body of the sheetcd material when fixingsubstances of this character are used.

I claim as my invention:

1. A laminated floor covering, comprising a limp, felted fibrous base oflow compressibility and hardness combined with a tough felted fibroussurface, said unitary structure being characterized in that thepercentage of non-fibrous constituents is materially greater than thefibrous constituents, and further characterized in that the proportionof binder is greater than the filler constituents, excluding fiber.

2. A. laminated floor covering,comprising a limp, felted fibrous baselayer of low co1npressibility and hardness combined with a tough feltedfibrous surface layer, said unitary structure being characterized inthat the percentage of non-fibrous constituents is materially greaterthan the fibrous constituents, further characterized in that the proportion of binder 1s greater than the filler .constituents, excludingfiber, and further characterized in thatsaid base contains nosubstantial amount of drying oil.-

' IZADOR J. NOVAK.

